Challenge Historically, the job market in Clark County, Washington, closely tracked that of the greater Portland region. However, the county’s job growth began to diverge from that of the metropolitan area in the early 2000s. Following the Great Recession, the unemployment rate in Clark County stood among the highest in […]
Challenge Due to the oil boom in the Bakken region of North Dakota, the Bismarck-Mandan region was the location of choice for engineering companies, oil field support services, and other business services related to oil and gas exploration. However, in the face of low oil prices and a slowing of
Challenge Like much of the region surrounding the Eagle Ford Shale, Corpus Christi experienced significant post-recession growth, fueled in large part by the increased rates of oil and gas production made possible through hydraulic fracturing technology. The resulting boom, together with the presence of the Port of Corpus Christi and
Challenge For over 60 years, economic development in the area surrounding Killeen, Texas, has been strongly influenced by the growth and expansion of Fort Hood, the largest active duty armored installation in the US Armed Services. Cities in the region have benefited economically, socially, and culturally from the thousands of
Challenge Jazzland, a 162-acre amusement park, opened in 2000 in an effort to create jobs and bring a major tourism attraction to New Orleans East. The park was purchased by Six Flags in 2002. Hurricane Katrina devastated the amusement park in 2005 and Six Flag’s own bankruptcy complicated the park’s
Challenge Fueled by troop movement at Fort Hood—Texas’ largest single-site employer – and expansion in the regional medical industry, the Greater Killeen area has experienced significant population growth over the past several decades. As the region continues to expand, it increasingly competes with the diverse amenities and higher wages offered
Challenge Robust employment and economic growth led to extremely tight labor market conditions in the Greater Fargo Moorhead region at the start of the 21st century. Even during the 2007-2009 recession, the region’s employment base contracted by less than 1 percent and had fully recovered by 2010. With unemployment less
Challenge In 2018, Brownsville was the largest US city in the Rio Grande Valley and a rapidly growing, bi-national region with more than 2.5 million residents. The community was in the midst of an unprecedented convergence of major investment projects from both the private sector (such as SpaceX’s new Boca
Challenge Located in the heart of the Arkansas River Valley, the greater Fort Smith area featured some exceptional assets in the early 2000s, including a strong manufacturing base, excellent access to major metropolitan areas, and a relatively low cost of living. However, the region had reached a tipping point and
